


a chemical, physical kryptonite

by justwantedtodance



Series: you send me back on my heels. [2]
Category: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Christmas, Dancing, Drink Spiking, F/M, Fluff, In which WhiJo stirs shit up, Nathaniel is a soft boi, Organized Chaos, Rebecca makes more Muggle references, SO MUCH DANCING CONTENT, Smut, Truth Serum, Yule Ball (Harry Potter), but also he can GET IT, merry crisis, this is a shit show
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-09-26
Packaged: 2020-10-28 13:10:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20779121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justwantedtodance/pseuds/justwantedtodance
Summary: Hogwarts AU continued. When the libations are laced, the truth comes to light.





	a chemical, physical kryptonite

**Author's Note:**

> _Helpless to the bass and the fading light. Oh, we were bound to get together, bound to get together..._
> 
> Can be read as a standalone, but it would be helpful if you read Part 1 of this series.

When the situation arises, Rebecca considers herself to be a pretty convenient liar. And even if someone could see through the lie, her acting skills come in handy when she requires a strategic way out of a situation. In her world, a flair for the dramatic is the most prized possession in her toolbox.

It’s too bad that Nathaniel’s known her long enough to discern when she’s putting on a show for appearance’s sake, which happens to be at this very moment as he cautiously watches her aggressively slice her turkey on her plate.

“Easy, tiger, it’s already dead,” he teases, sliding onto the bench next to her. He can see that she’s not in the mood for jokes right now, so he tries a new tactic. “Hey, what’s going on?” Rebecca huffs, still saying nothing. “Okay then.”

They eat in silence for a few moments before Nathaniel makes out a few of Rebecca’s faint mumblings to herself about “Josh” and “stupid third year.”

“Ah, I see what this is about.” Nathaniel sighs, sets his utensils aside, and turns to face her more directly. “Look, Rebecca, I can’t change the fact that for some god-forsaken reason, you still think, after the way he’s treated you, that Josh Chan is the sun, moon, and stars, but as I’ve said before and will say again, he isn’t worth it. I mean, clearly, he has pretty low standards if he’s resorted to bringing a third year to the Yule Ball.”

He’d expect her to respond with something fiery in agreeance, but none of her usual spark is there. She grinds her teeth in her mouth and tries to mask the hurt she feels from Josh’s rejection of her invitation to the ball. She had hoped that by going to the ball with him that they could start to rekindle their relationship, but once he pulled her aside and called her “dramatic and a little… weird,” her heart shattered once again, just like before summer holiday.

But then came the anger, white-hot and simmering, when she found out that he asked some third year Hufflepuff named Sara, who is apparently his neighbor back at home. Of course, the Chans adore Sara with her prim and proper pureblood self and petite, puny frame and her demure little voice. It makes Rebecca dig her nails into her palm just thinking about how Josh and Sara would most likely one day graduate from Hogwarts and get married and make cute little mixed race babies, but at least those babies wouldn’t be tainted with her half-Muggle blood.

Nathaniel senses her tension, so he leans in and brushes his hand down the length of her arm and presses his lips close to her ear. “You wanna escape for a bit? Let me take your mind off of it?” Rebecca still says nothing and means to look up at him with more annoyance than she actually musters. Not the right time. He probably should have expected that.

They’re not dating. Absolutely not. Inter-House relationships are looked down upon anyhow, plus Nathaniel Plimpton is anything but the dating type. He’s the guy to call for a romp so good that it’ll make you forget what’s bothering you. Need a quick, dirty fuck to release some pent-up tension? He’s your guy. But a  _ boyfriend?!  _ You’d sooner see a flying hog than Nathaniel Plimpton being called someone’s boyfriend.

Since the Amortentia incident a few months back, the two of them have met up for the occasional hookup, mostly stolen moments out of frustration and desperation in stifling broom closets just to blow off steam, usually during late nights studying for O.W.L.s. Nothing permanent, no strings. Just the occasional round of sex against a wall or a door, kiss quick, and move along.

It works for them. It’s all either of them can handle with the enormous pressures of O.W.L.s and prefect duties, so they’ve agreed to keep things simple and not bring up matters that might disrupt their delicate situation.

But Nathaniel’s never been simple. In fact, if there’s anything he hates most in this world, it’s simplicity. Simple equals boring. He lives for the challenge, the spontaneity. So, why not make things interesting?

“Be my date to the Yule Ball.”

Rebecca sputters and coughs as she nearly chokes on her pumpkin juice, startled by Nathaniel’s blunt invitation. “I beg your pardon?”

“Did I stutter? Be my date to the Yule Ball.”

She turns to face him on the bench. “Newsflash, Plimpton, I don’t need to be one of your sympathy projects. Are you asking me out of pity? Is that it? Am I that much of a charity case?”

“Absolutely not. I was the Hogwarts Triwizard champion this year, which means I’ll settle for nothing less than the best when it comes to my companion for the evening. And since everyone’s always going on and on about how you’re ‘the brightest young witch of our age,’ that makes you the best, does it not?” Rebecca shrugs and looks away from him, but he takes one of her hands and squeezes it, her eyes immediately snapping up to find his. “I’d be honored to take you to the Ball, Bunch. That is, if you’ll pull your head out of your ass and agree to go with me?”

Rebecca rolls her eyes but flashes him a flicker of a smile. “I’ll meet you in the courtyard at 7:30.”

Dinner finishes just as their conversation ends, and as they’re each heading back to their respective common rooms, Rebecca can’t help but take one last glance at Nathaniel before he descends the staircase to the Dungeons. She should hate everything about him, she really should, but her once overpowering hatred for the tall blonde Slytherin only rarely rolls to a boil in her blood when he’s being particularly stubborn and irksome. Mostly, she sees a friend, a companion and an equal, if nothing else.

“Ooooh, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you look smitten,” Professor Proctor coos, nudging Rebecca’s shoulder as she catches her staring down the Slytherin staircase with a fond look in her eyes. Quickly, Rebecca snaps back to reality and, with a flustered shake of her head, almost petulantly stomps her foot but rubs her hands down her robes instead.

“I do not!” 

Paula shoots Rebecca a disbelieving look and descends the same staircase that Nathaniel did moments ago. “Let me know when you change your tune, turtledove!”

Rebecca turns on her heel and quickly marches up the staircase to the Gryffindor common room to clear her head. There is no way she’s smitten with Nathaniel Plimpton. No way.

As she slips into her matching set of emerald green lingerie on the evening of the Ball, she repeatedly reminds herself that this is not for or about Nathaniel; she’s simply being festive and donning both Christmas colors this evening.

She’s always loved the holiday season and the magic that it brings, especially in this place where the snow covers the ground and the dark green trees trickle down icicles from their leafy branches. The berries on the bushes with their frosted skins and the smell of fresh pine when she steps outside each day whisks her away to a fairytale land in her mind that reminds her of the Christmas stories her father used to read to her just before the jolly old fat man in a red velvet suit came floating down the chimney. Holidays were supposed to be simple. Holidays meant days of celebration with starched sparkling bows atop them, each one more special than the previous. That’s if Rebecca knew what a normal holiday looked like.

A special, normal Christmas. That’s her wish this year.

She smiles as she steps into her crimson ball gown. It hugs the soft feminine curves of her waist but tapers out past her hips into a silhouette fit for a princess. The bodice slopes in a stunning sweetheart neckline and features a few scattered appliques of roses standing out just a touch from the material of the dress. Her house color suits her well, and she has just the lip tint to match the dress. Valencia insists on doing her makeup and hair, so they meet in the prefect’s bathroom, where the Slytherin prefect weaves golden vines into Rebecca’s now softly curled hair. She no longer looks like a frizzy ragamuffin; now, she looks… quite stunning.

“There, all finished. Take a look?” Rebecca observes herself in the mirror and hardly recognizes the girl staring back at her. Despite Valencia swearing that she didn’t use a glamour charm on Rebecca, she still can’t believe how she looks. Like a giddy schoolgirl, Valencia saddles up next to Rebecca on a stool in front of the vanity to finish applying her own makeup. “So, who’s the lucky guy?”

“No one special,” Rebecca shrugs, smoothing out invisible wrinkles on her dress.

“Don’t make me hex it out of you, Bunch. You know I will.” Welcome back the Ice Queen, Valencia Perez, wizards and witches. Rebecca has no doubt she’ll wield a hex if given enough provoking. “Come on, spill. Who is it? Did he ask you? Did you ask him?  _ Please _ don’t tell me it’s Josh. Ugh, I can’t believe I dated that bonehead. Some ‘finder’ he was, he couldn’t even find my… never mind.”

“Well, it’s not Josh,” Rebecca says shifting uncomfortably, avoiding Valencia’s anxious stare. She says the words so quietly that they barely break the air. “It’s Nathaniel.”

“What,” she nearly shrieks. “I’m sorry, Nathaniel Plimpton? Slytherin Prince Nathaniel Plimpton? You can’t be serious.”

“It’s true. He asked me. Actually, it was kind of… sweet.”

Valencia laughs acidicly. “Honey, there’s not a sweet thing in his entire body, and if there is, I’d expect the Sea around Azkaban to be still as a rock. You know he’s just using you, right?”

“What do you mean,” Rebecca asks cautiously, and she silently begs her voice not to tremble.

Valencia sighs and delves into an almost matronly monologue about the lesser sex. “As most boys our year are, they’re simple, hot-blooded creatures with one thing on their minds: sex. That’s what he wants from you, so if you’re hoping that this night will end in anything more than that, then you should prepare yourself for disappointment.”

Rebecca sighs, her shoulders deflating. Only for a moment as she finally thinks of a quick retort. “And is that what Josh Wilson wants from you?”

“Oh no, of course not! He asked me to be his cover for the evening while he makes eyes with that sixth year Victor from across the Hall.” Rebecca’s eyes widen in recognition of what Valencia means. “But seriously, Rebecca, don’t be charmed by him. I don’t want to see you get hurt. Tell anyone I said that, and I swear, I’ll make a circus clown stalk you around the castle, got it?”

Rebecca touches Valencia’s shoulder in genuine friendly affection. “You’re a great friend, V.”

“I really am, aren’t I?” Valencia struts away in her black kitten heels and skin-tight long green dress and leaves Rebecca to glance at herself one last time before making her way back to the dormitory to retrieve her fur wrap.

Rebecca steps outside the front doors of the castle and into the courtyard just after the clock strikes a quarter past seven, and she relishes the feeling of her shoes sinking into the soft snowy ground underneath her. She looks up at the archway to the rose garden, now decorated with twinkling lights like pixies dancing between the leaves, and the breath leaves her lungs almost instantaneously. The flowers have been charmed to stay on the bush no matter the season, but they are coated in a layer of frost from the colder temperatures that haven’t left since mid-November. Rebecca gently traces her finger over a frosted petal and admires its delicate beauty as it sits on the bush so regally.

It’s in the moment that Rebecca’s frame is illuminated angelically by the lights above the archway that Nathaniel steps outside the castle doors, slips on his gloves, and finds Rebecca standing in front of him, entranced. He freezes on sight when he sees her. She’s turned mostly away from him, but he knows that’s her standing before him, a vision in red and gold. A few snowflakes have fallen in the ends of her hair which only enhance the sparkle from the lights above her head. His mouth falls agape at the sight of her standing before him, her lips turning up into a smile as she stares at the descending snow above her. He nearly hadn’t recognized her, but he has to admit that she looks truly… 

“Rebecca?” He keeps his voice soft as not to startle her, but it’s he who is startled when she turns around at the sound of her name and looks to him curiously. She’s even more radiant than before, and it makes his heart skip a beat inside his chest.

“Hi.” She intakes a sharp breath when she catches a glimpse of Nathaniel, looking quite possibly more handsome than she’s ever seen him. He’s wearing a thick coat to block out the cold, but she can see some of the suit underneath him, and she blames the gust of wind that passed for the blood rushing to her cheeks.

Slowly, he takes a few steps in her direction and meets her underneath the archway. “Wow, you…” Momentarily, he’s at a loss for words, so he chuckles a bit and makes light of what could have been an intense moment. Keep it simple. Play it cool. “you clean up well, Bunch.”

She smirks at him, dusting some loose snow off of his shoulder. “Yeah, you’re not so bad yourself, Plimpton. Merry Christmas.”

“To you as well.” They stand in friendly silence before something catches Nathaniel’s attention. He looks up, which isn’t much of a challenge being a head taller than Rebecca, and his eyes settle on something interesting. He gazes back down at her with a sensual look in his eyes, to which she responds with flustered confusion. “Look up.”

Rebecca didn’t even notice before, a sprig of mistletoe hanging in the center of the archway. She giggles as he takes both of her hands to pull her closer gently. “Well, I guess we have to obey the mistletoe.”

The kiss is a gentle one, almost feather-like in softness at first, lips barely touching. Gradually, they deepen the kiss and press their lips more firmly together, though it’s still slow and measured. Neither of them want to rush this moment. Though Rebecca is the first to seek more than a kiss, sliding her chilly hands inside of Nathaniel’s coat and begging for permission to have a taste of him with her tongue. He denies her with a throaty laugh and a smile as he covers her cold hands with his own.

“Someone’s eager. I’d hope to at least get you fed before I have a feast of my own.” Rebecca shakes her head, rolling her eyes playfully.

“You have a one-track mind, has anyone ever told you that?”

“Yes.  _ You _ have.” They laugh together as she twines her fingers inside of his.

He stares at her a moment longer, taking in this image and committing it to memory. Some snow has fallen into her mascara-laden lashes, and he swears he feels his heart swelling inside his chest as he observes her pale skin and rosy cheeks and adorable nose crinkling up as she smiles. She nearly loses her breath and all intelligible thought when Nathaniel leans in once more and presses a tender kiss to the apple of her right cheek. Rebecca’s eyelashes flutter as she accepts his kiss, a small content sound, barely audible, coming from her throat. She reopens her eyes to find him offering his arm to her.

“Shall we?”

Rebecca loops her arm through his, and together, they walk up the steps into the castle to line up for the presentation of the champions.

As they’re introduced to the crowd in the Great Hall, they pause at the center of the dance floor where he bows to her and she curtseys to him, and he takes the briefest of opportunities to kiss her hand before they separate into their respective places for the opening dance. The violins play, and the dance begins.

The couples around them fall into step, the wintry waltz music filling the room, and weave between partners until they’re reunited with their original escort, and they spread out across the dance floor. Rebecca can’t help the smile that spreads across her face as she dances with Nathaniel, who’s much lighter on his feet than she had expected. She would have assumed he thought of dancing as frilly and not masculine, but she can safely say he’s a natural.

“I see someone was paying attention in dance lessons,” she quips. Nathaniel takes her hand and spins her underneath his arm before returning to proper dance hold.

“I’ve learned quite a bit from my mother over the years. And I see you’re not as clumsy on your feet as I thought you might be. You’re not bad at this.”

Rebecca smiles, looking away from him shyly. All of a sudden, she squeaks when she feels Nathaniel’s hands gripping both sides of her waist and lifting her up with a spin as the music swells and the key changes. She laughs as he sets her feet down and twirls her around once before settling back into their dance. As they skate around the room and let the music guide their steps, Rebecca’s heart soars as the music does, for once feeling uninhibited and alive. The freedom in her heart is enlightening, and she and Nathaniel move together as if it were written in the stars above for centuries. Someone, and not just someone, but Nathaniel is holding her safe and warm, and it’s better than her wildest imaginations of this evening.

The music softens, and the tempo slows just slightly, and as the lead violinist lets a note extend into a lengthy fermata, Nathaniel slowly dips her backwards and waits for her reaction. Stunned with mouth agape, breath long stolen, is the only proper display of her internal state at the moment. On the one hand, she doesn’t trust him not to drop her right here and incite a moment of embarrassment on her part at his inability to hold her weight, so in response, she clings to the sleeve of his forearm. On the other hand, he’s looking down at her with some emotion that she’s never seen anyone look at her with, much less him. There’s a softness in his blue-eyed gaze that’s never appeared before, especially not to her. Perhaps the fear of an imminent concussion isn’t the only reason for her elevated heart rate and shallow breathing.

When the music returns to finish its final measures, Nathaniel returns Rebecca to standing, finishing out one last box step with her before bowing graciously to thank her for the dance. She dips in a curtsey in return and convinces herself that she only hallucinated the look in his eyes from moments ago as she excuses herself to powder her nose. It’s simpler to persuade herself that her dramatics and fervor for romantic moments caused her to fabricate that sparkle in his eyes.

The ball continues on without a hitch. The orchestra fills the entire hall with jubilation and celebration of the joyous holiday season as students and professors alike partner or group off and dance the night away. At some point in the midst of the partners’ dances, Valencia ends up dancing with Nathaniel, and she’s not shy about confronting his intentions with Rebecca.

“What intentions? I have no intentions with Rebecca, and even if I did, I certainly wouldn’t tell the school gossip of them.”

Valencia puffs air from her mouth. “Oh, please, don’t act like we all didn’t see what was happening in that opening dance, Plimpton. You may have convinced yourself that there’s nothing going on between you two, but you can’t fool anyone else with a working pair of eyes, so everyone but Mousy Maya Whats-her-face and your little girlfriend.”

“Rebecca’s not my girlfriend, we’re not dating, I don’t even like her all that much.”

Abruptly, Valencia drops her arms and stops dancing with Nathaniel. “We can finish the dance when you clean up that pile of Crup shit.” She flips her long braid behind her shoulder and turns on her heel to mingle with Heather Davis and a few of their other classmates. Nathaniel stands at a loss for words before huffing and grabbing a refreshment at the table in the back of the Great Hall.

As Rebecca stands by the sink and looks at herself in the mirror wondering how in the world she ended up questioning the nature of hers and Nathaniel’s relationship for the third time in a matter of hours, Paula slides up beside Rebecca and casually applies some lipstick.

“Singing a new song yet?”

“I am not smitten. You can quit pestering me because even if I wanted it to, nothing is going to happen. It can’t happen.”

“So, you  _ do _ want something to happen between you and Nathaniel,” Paula goads.

Rebecca shushes her in fear that someone from another House might be listening and be waiting to use it against either of them. “Haven’t I made it clear that nothing can happen,” Rebecca hisses. “Want it or not, there would be serious consequences. And lest we forget how relationships do not work for me. See exhibit A: Joshua Felix Chan.”

“Listen, honey, I would never tell you to do something I thought unwise, you know that. I’m not asking you to marry him, just ask him to dance or something. I mean, you two are friends, right?”

They’re friend- _ ly _ , at the very least. Friends who have seen each other naked or close to it, at the very most. Rebecca shrugs, unsure of how to answer Paula’s question. Paula picks Rebecca’s chin up from the timid angle where she’s staring at her shoes and places her hands on the young witch’s shoulders.

“You know, I was a lot like you at your age. I used to be afraid to be who I was and to make choices without thinking every alternative through. But you are a Gryffindor for a reason, aren’t you? Because, whether or not you believe it just yet, you are a brave little witch. So, go out there and be brave, Rebecca.”

Rebecca smiles as her former professor pulls her into an embrace. “Thanks, Professor Proctor.”

“Just between you and me, you can call me Paula.” The older woman smiles as Rebecca accepts her hug. Suddenly, Paula pulls back and stares Rebecca down. “But you tell anyone else, and I’ll have you expelled. I mean it. I have a reputation to uphold, you know.”

Rebecca offers a mock salute to her. “Ma’am, yes ma’am. Thanks for everything, really.”

“Go get ‘em, tiger.”

Just as Rebecca enters the Great Hall again, the orchestra is finishing its final song, and Rebecca hangs towards the wall to look for a group to socialize with when she’s surprised by her escort’s hand brushing her bare shoulder.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you. The band’s starting in 10 minutes. Come on, I’ll introduce you to some of my friends.”

Of course, although this is a school for wizards and witches training to be professionals in the art of magic, the students are still pre-teens and teenagers, after all. And if there’s any event that the youngsters look forward to most, it’s a school dance. Hence why the formalities conclude after an hour or so, and the rest of the evening’s playlist is sponsored by a Muggle cover band known as the Prom Knights, though these “Knights” don no shining armor or bear a shield. Unless the “shining armor” happens to be military tag necklaces and glimmering belt buckles, and the shields they bear are sunshades for their eyes. Indoors. How preposterous.

Whatever makes the kids happy. Professor Whitefeather is always looking to stay in touch with the younger generation, as he’s raising a young witch of his own who will, in a few years time, be attending Hogwarts soon. As he bops his head along to the fierce drum beat vibrating through the hall, Professor Proctor smiles and shakes her head at him, letting the kid at heart have his fun.

The lights dim low, and the students surround the raised stage that appears as the band opens their first set with a punk rock cover of a highly popularized dance anthem across both the Muggle and the Wizarding worlds: “Call Me Maybe.” The song isn’t meant to be taken seriously, of course, but no one in the room can resist singing along with the band, even Nathaniel, despite initially rolling his eyes. He gives in when Rebecca tugs at his sleeve and begs him to sing along with her.

A few songs in, and Josh Wilson stands at the punch table, his arms folded as he stares at the crowd of students absorbed in the music. He’s never been big on dancing, but he is always game for a good party. Heather Davis of Ravenclaw finally manages to escape the mosh pit of jumping and gyrating teenagers and stands next to Josh at the punch table.

“Why aren’t you out there? And don’t tell me that all Slytherins are too cool for this sort of thing because your best buddy Plimpton is out there, and he looks like he’s having fun.”

The two find Nathaniel in the crowd, who’s currently wrapped in Rebecca’s arms as they’re singing (off-key, her more so than him) to the Muggle pop star Taylor Swift’s song, “Blank Space,” as the band rocks out on stage. “Yeah, well, Plimpton may be the most popular guy at Hogwarts in our year, but he’s actually a giant nerd.” Josh sighs and tries not to make it obvious that he’s staring at Victor begrudgingly dancing with a Gryffindor girl in his year.

“Yeah, he’s kind of an undercover dork. Don’t you wish everyone could just, like, be honest about who they are and what they want? I mean, he’s  _ totally  _ got the hots for Rebecca, and she’s crushing too, I can tell, but neither of them will tell each other what’s up.”

Josh slyly pulls an object from his pocket and wags it at Heather. “I could make that happen.”

Heather’s eyes widen when she sees the small phial in his hand. “Yeah, I’m gonna assume that’s not water. Or alcohol.”

He shakes his head. “Nah, not even close. It’s better.”

He uncorks the phial and tries to inconspicuously hold it over the punch bowl, but Heather yanks his hand away before he can taint the drink. “Dude, what do you think you’re doing?”

“Making this party more… interesting.”

“Or you could just, like, tell the band to switch up the setlist—”

“Aww, come on, Heather, where’s the fun in that? Come on, we could make this the most unforgettable Yule Ball yet. You know it’ll be fun to sit back and watch as all hell breaks loose.”

Heather hums, mulling over the consequences of what could happen if Josh chooses to drop the potion into the bowl of punch. “Well, I do looooove dramaaaaa…”

“And I’m in the mood for a little chaos.”

Three drops is enough to make the drinker spill his or her innermost desires, but this punch bowl serves at least 20 people, so instead of meticulously counting out the correct number of drops like he probably should do, Josh tips some of the liquid into the bowl and hopes it’s enough to dissolve evenly throughout the beverage. He decides to stir it up, trying to look nonchalant as he does, and pours himself a glass that he has no intention to drink.

Just then, an unassuming Tim Campbell of Hufflepuff comes to the table, and Josh kindly offers his cup to Tim, who takes it without hesitation and thanks Josh for his generosity.

Let the chaos begin.

Guitars electrify a rock rendition of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” that has everyone in the audience unable to keep from dancing. While the original song took more of a dance pop tone, this version feels more true to the lyrics of the song: passionate and a little dirty. Hopefully the teachers aren’t watching how closely the students are dancing and aren’t secretly deducting House points for inappropriate dancing. If so, Ravenclaw’s miniscule edge over Hufflepuff is seriously in jeopardy.

Nathaniel finds Rebecca again with a glass of punch in hand for each of them. After singing her lungs out, she definitely could use a drink to quench her thirst. She and Nathaniel toast to a truly unforgettable Yule Ball and gulp down their glasses in a hurry. 

Suddenly, there’s a shift in the air. It feels nearly fifteen degrees hotter than before, but no one’s stoked a new fire inside the castle. Certainly it’s not an allergic reaction. Did she just drink drugs? She’s always been curious about the effects of hallucinogens but is much too chicken to try it herself after the case studies she’s read. Rebecca’s skin feels alive with sensation, the beads of sweat between her breasts slithering against the gooseflesh filled with potential energy waiting anxiously to be set into motion. She needs to be touched.

Nathaniel’s heart begins to race inside his chest as he stares at Rebecca before him, his palms tingling with sweat. Something prickles at the back of his neck, and his bowtie feels wound too tight around his neck all of a sudden, so he yanks it undone and lets it hang loose. He loosens the top button of his dress shirt to gain some relief; though he knows it’s unprofessional, desperate times and all that, right? He’s buried his desire for her deep within his bones, knowing that showing any sort of favor towards her would incite jeers from his classmates and certainly ruin his relationship with his father. Right now, though, he doesn’t care. He needs to touch her.

The itch is scratched when she presses her back to his front and sways her hips in time with the music and invites the growing bulge in his trousers to come out and play. Nathaniel’s hands move to the front of her hips, and he matches her rhythm, grinding to the beat along with her. He sweeps her hair to one side of her neck so that he can scatter kisses along the exposed side, and Rebecca moans openly, her hand reaching behind his head to curl her fingers in his hair. Whatever sneaky little devil has inserted itself inside of Nathaniel’s body, he begs it not to leave because this feels too damn good to resist.

The drums drop out, and the singer croons, only backed by a guitar, the words to the bridge. Rebecca feels herself being turned around, and she’s suddenly face to face with Nathaniel, who’s looking down at her like he’s ready to both devour her and make sweet, sweet love to her. His mouth traces the curve of her ear as he sways with her and whispers ( _ in French! _ ), “I want your love, and I want your revenge. I want your love. I don’t wanna be friends.”

If her underwear could have magically hit the floor of their own accord, they would have.

Nathaniel pulls away and looks deep into Rebecca’s eyes, begging to have an earnest conversation with her for just a moment. His breathing labored, he admits, “I don’t want to just be friends anymore, Rebecca. Do you?”

She looks up at him with her arms wound tightly around his neck, her eyes blinking innocently, and shakes her head deliberately. Her lips turn up into a smile as Nathaniel pulls her in closer to kiss her, her mouth open to invite his tongue inside. By the next kiss, the whole room fades away until it’s just the two of them and the music caught in a bad,  _ but oh so good _ , romance.

“Let’s get out of here,” she whispers desperately and hopes he wants the same thing she does.

“So soon, baby? The party isn’t over just yet.”

Rebecca kisses his jawline and tempts him further to give into his desires. “It’ll still be here when we get back. I just need you. Right now.”

“As you wish, princess.”

They interlock fingers and try to slip out of the hall unnoticed, but Heather and Valencia, who witnessed the whole exchange from a few couples away, give each other a knowing look.

“This should end well,” Valencia remarks dryly as she takes a drink of punch.

Leading her downstairs instead of up, Rebecca gives him a puzzled look but doesn’t have time to question it given their palpable and burning need for each other and the lack of time they have before someone wonders where they’ve run off to. The lights downstairs glow distinctly greener than before, and Rebecca wonders if they’re nearing the location of the Slytherin common room. She’s never seen it herself, though she’s speculated about where the room might be. Her thought process is interrupted when Nathaniel turns to face her and presses her back into the cold stone wall behind her, kissing her as he tangles a hand in her curls.

The kiss sparks desperate volts of energy from their lips, and Nathaniel makes a low moaning sound that nearly sets Rebecca’s insides on fire. Never has she heard him so uninhibited and needy before, but she certainly could get used to the sound of that. She also didn’t expect to be running off for a quickie with the hottest boy in their year, but here she is with her back against the wall and his lips and tongue sliding against hers. When did she get so blessed?

Stumbling inside an unlocked door, he walks her backwards towards the front of the classroom, his lips never leaving hers. Nathaniel eventually begins to kiss down the side of her neck, and Rebecca finally opens her eyes to see where he’s brought her.

“The Potions classroom? Wait, what are we doing in here?”

“You sure you wanna know? I don’t want to corrupt your innocent soul,” he teases as he kisses her collarbone.

“That’s exactly why I keep you around, Plimpton. Come on, tell me, please?”

Nathaniel pulls away and gives her one of his infamous half-smiles, his eyebrow quirking up in amusement at her attempts to pull him back towards her face. He steps away, something much better coming to mind. “Well, okay.” Without a moment to lose, Nathaniel drops to his knees and unbuttons his jacket. “Hope you don’t mind, I’m a bit parched, and I think I’m in need of some… refreshment.”

“By all means,” Rebecca sighs, leaning her head back against the clean blackboard.

Nathaniel lazily trails his fingers up her smooth leg, admiring her choice of heel for this evening, the Greecian style sandal complimenting her dress and hairstyle perfectly. “The night of the Amortentia incident, I couldn’t sleep. My thoughts, waking and resting, were consumed by you. I wanted you so badly, Rebecca.” His hand moves higher ever so slowly until he finally reaches her underwear and rubs her slit outside the silky material. “Late that night, I crept out from my bed to the bathroom, and I touched myself to the thought of you. Of us. Right here in this very classroom.”

“Oh, Nathaniel…”

He gives her some relief and slides a finger underneath the fabric. “You made the most beautiful sounds, just like that. It made me rub my cock harder when you moaned my name, and even though we were alone in this room, I wanted everyone to know that I was the one to make you moan like that, to come all over my fingers, to fall apart on my tongue…”

The thick layers of crimson skirt make the task more cumbersome, but Nathaniel eventually dives his head beneath her skirts and begins to lick her just like in his fantasy. Her voice resonates through the walls of the classroom, but no one is nearby to hear the way he pleasures her. In some ways a blessing, but in others, a shame; what he wouldn’t give to have Chan or Campbell or any of those other duds listen in on how to pleasure a woman. Rebecca clenches her fists in her dress and wishes she could grip Nathaniel’s hair as she grinds against his mouth.

“ _ Fuck _ , please, Nathaniel,” she cries.

He pauses momentarily but only to adjust his own erection in his pants at hearing the words that just came out of her mouth. “Say that again.”

“Please, Nathaniel…”

“No, the other part,” he says, nipping at her inner thigh. That should not have made her so aroused, but she doesn’t bother to question her desires now. Frankly, she doesn’t have the mental capability at the moment.

“Fuck, you’re so good at this. Shit, Nathaniel, I’m so…”

He pinches her ass teasingly, laughing as she squeaks and shifts her hips further onto his face. “I love it when you curse like a Muggle.”

“Don’t stop,” she begs, her head tipped back and mouth dropped open in pleasure.

“You gonna come for me?” She nods and works her hips into his face a little harder. “Who’s getting you off like this, Rebecca?”

She pants, “You are.”

“And what’s my name,” he taunts, slowing the pace of his tongue against her clit.

Rebecca decides to use his full moniker and draws it out slowly. “Nathaniel Plimpton the third…”

He resumes his frantic pace and relishes in the high-pitched moans coming from her lips. “Sounds so good coming from your lips, sweetheart. Come on, come for me.”

She does a half-minute later, her eyes squeezed shut, and she couldn’t care less if anyone walked in seeing her in this much pleasure. In fact, she would love it if someone did. Might prove to them that she’s not just a stick in the mud with her nose in a book all the time. She comes down from her high breathing shallower than usual thanks to the corset bodice of her ball gown, but she’ll recover soon enough.

Nathaniel eases himself up from the ground when she’s recovered from the aftershocks of her orgasm, and he looks at her with a glistening mouth and chin to which Rebecca giggles and looks away in embarrassment.

“What’s the matter with you?” Rebecca gestures to her own chin

“It’s just… you’ve got a little…” Before he can wipe his mouth on his hand, she steps up to him and pulls his neck down to kiss him and, subsequently, her own wetness from his lips.

“You are a messy princess, but I love it.”

She smiles as she tips her head up and kisses him once more, and he wraps his hands around her waist, guiding her towards the long table in the center of the room.

“Wait, I don’t know what’s been on this table, nor do I want to, and I certainly don’t want it on my ball gown.”

Nathaniel casts a  _ Scourgify _ over the long table in the front of the classroom and props her up onto it, stepping between her legs and kissing her once more. He lays her down gently and almost sets to work unbuckling his belt before she stops him.

“Wait. Lock the door. Not that the thrill of someone walking in on us isn’t arousing because it is, but I’d prefer not to have to face anyone who might still be here over the holidays like me if they’ve seen me in a compromising position.”

“Fair point,” he mumbles as he locks the door and follows it quickly with an anti- _ Alohomora _ , just for safe-keeping. “Anything else before I fuck your checklists clear out of your head?”

“I think that about does it,” she says, shifting on the table to bring herself closer to him. “I’m already protected, as you know.”

“Lovely. Now, stop thinking, and let me make you feel good.”

Nathaniel sinks inside of her, and any thoughts still left in her mind have retreated so that she can focus on the pleasure Nathaniel’s giving her. She strokes the back of his neck underneath his collar as he pushes in and out of her and plants kisses all over her face. Rebecca’s legs can’t quite reach the ground from the height of the table, so Nathaniel takes her outer thigh and wraps it around his back so he can thrust deeper. She arches her back off the table when he hits a particularly good place inside of her that makes her curse and let his name tumble brokenly from her lips. It doesn’t take long before she’s clenching around him, and he quickly follows her over the edge, releasing inside her with a groan of her name.

“So good,” Nathaniel sighs as he strokes her cheek. She looks up at him with a hazy, blissed out expression and threads her hand in the soft hairs at the back of his neck. He carefully pulls out of her and casts a charm to clean the two of them up before helping her down from the table and back on her shaky feet.

“We should probably head back to the party. I’m sure people will start to wonder if we’re gone too long.” Rebecca reluctantly fixes her hair and is about to unlock the door with her wand before Nathaniel tilts her chin up and kisses her gently, no ulterior sexual motive present. She breaks the kiss, her breaths unsteady in her chest as she looks up at him. “What was that for?”

He smiles sweetly down at her. “Because I wanted to.” He takes her hand and leads her back to the Great Hall, where they’re both expecting to find the party just as they had left it fifteen minutes prior. The noise from the Hall is near deafening, and the pair assumes the festivities are really raging inside.

Raging is certainly one word for it.

The band on stage is still entertaining the crowd, and while there’s a sizeable crowd of mostly younger students still absorbed in the music, it’s the events happening along the perimeter of the hall that are the most entertaining.

First, kissing, and lots of it. And with people no one had expected to see and some that people would have rather not seen. Despite not drinking any of the laced punch, Josh finally worked up the nerve to dance with Victor, and from the looks of it, they might want to get a room to continue dancing to the rock cover of Ginuwine’s “Pony” before too long. Valencia is currently straddling a Ravenclaw girl with a blonde pixie cut named Beth. These two couples are just some of the many who have finally allowed their passions to come forward with the help of White Josh’s sugary interference.

Then comes the fighting. Poor Maya cowers as Tim Campbell glowers at her, but he’s about as intimidating as one Hufflepuff can be.

“Literally no one cares about your weird recycled art, Maya. No one says it, but we’re all thinking it. Me being a Hufflepuff just makes me too damn nice to say anything about it.”

“Cool, well, I guess being a Hufflepuff works in your favor so your girlfriend doesn’t have to tell you that you suck in bed and hurt your poor little baby feelings,” Maya yells.

Some war in the middle of the dance floor has broken out between some older Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws, but it’s too gruesome to watch. Between the two most civil Houses fighting and the two most hostile Houses making out and practically fucking around the shadowed corners of the Great Hall, it’s too much for the staff to handle, so the professors scatter in search of Headmaster Buttenweiser to dispel the situation.

Rolling her eyes and tossing back her hair, Professor Proctor huffs and marches out of the Great Hall. “I did  _ not _ leave the Ministry for this!”

Meanwhile, Rebecca and Nathaniel look to each other after Professor Proctor’s outburst and reconsider their choice to rejoin the party. Might be a little too much fun for the both of them. “You want to take a walk outside,” he asks.

“Sure.” She smiles and twines her fingers with his as they make their way to the front doors of the castle with their coats, and he escorts her out to the rose garden where they first met for the evening.

The snow still falls steadily in the evening air, the wind whipping by every so often, but the chill isn’t as fierce as they would have expected for this time of year. She’s reacquainted with the twinkling lights in the bushes while some of the small pixies taking shelter in the maze come out and land on Nathaniel, cooing over his charming good looks and encouraging him to offer Rebecca one of the roses. After one of the pixies tugs on his ear and chirps at him to do it, he finally concedes, plucking off a deep red rose to match her dress, and taps her shoulder before he holds the rose out to her. She gasps and admires the way the ice melts from the petals and the droplets fall down to the stem, and Nathaniel has the most boyish grin on his face as he waits for her to accept it.

“This is beautiful. Thank you.” He nods in gratitude, taking her other hand and planting a chaste kiss on the back of it before continuing down the starlit path to the center of the maze.

They walk in silence for a few moments until Rebecca hears Nathaniel take a long breath, unsure of what for. He’s preparing himself to lay his heart on the line and tell Rebecca what’s been on his mind the last few weeks and, even more so, the entire evening.

“Rebecca, there’s something I want to tell you. It’s been on my mind for a while, but I think I’ve finally worked up the nerve to say it. Taking a page out of your book for once.” She giggles at his compliment to her courage. He stops walking just as they turn a corner to reach the center of the garden and holds both of her hands in his, staring at her under the pale light with reverence. Her lips part as he tucks a curl behind her ear and looks at her with an unforeseen softness. “Rebecca, when I said that I didn’t want to just be friends anymore, I meant—”

“Josh…”

Both of their heads whip around to where that sound came from. Rebecca certainly didn’t say that, but someone did. It’s then she spots Josh with that third year Sara sitting on his lap kissing him, Josh’s lips kissing down her neck.

“You’re so beautiful,” he praises. He never called Rebecca that.

A sword suddenly metaphorically lodged in her throat, she tries to swallow around it and fights the tears that she knows are prickling behind her eyes. The force of it makes her whimper, and it pulls Josh’s focus to where Rebecca is standing with Nathaniel.

“Rebecca…” He’s at a loss for what to say other than her name as he stares at her bewildered. She wasn’t supposed to see that, it wasn’t supposed to hurt her. And briefly she considers that it shouldn’t, but seeing her ex with another witch, and in such a romantic setting too, doesn’t ease the sting any less, no matter how many unseemly character traits she can pin to his name. “Rebecca, I’m—”

“Don’t,” she cries weakly, shaking her head and darting back towards the castle trying to contain her tears. Josh wants to go after her and nearly does, but Nathaniel grimaces, tightening his jaw, and a shake of the Slytherin’s head says everything Josh needs to know about how badly he hurt Rebeca. Nathaniel turns away from him and sets off to find Rebecca. She’s crumpled in a puddle on the stairs like fresh blood against the pale snow, her hands covering her face, and Nathaniel runs to her, quickly covering her and taking her inside.

He wraps an arm around the back of her shoulders and tucks her into his side as she tries to muffle her sobs with her hands. For the second time that night, he’s leading her down the stairs of the castle, presumably to where they were just minutes ago, but he decides to offer her a bit more privacy. Nathaniel warns her that he’s going to cast a Shrinking charm on her, and when she nervously asks why, he begs her to trust him. She nods, and suddenly, she’s tucked into the pocket of his coat. He tries to lighten the mood with a joke about how it didn’t take much work to shrink her down to pixie size, and he vaguely hears her tell him to fuck off before he stuffs her in his pocket and makes his way down the long, winding hall from the Potions classroom. Once he’s uttered the password to enter his House’s common room, Nathaniel bolts up the stairs to his shared dormitory room, though he knows it’s vacant for the time being, and lifts the charm to return her to normal size.

She looks around puzzled as her stomach begins to resettle. “Are we in your…?”

“I thought you might want to be away from prying eyes.” She shifts nervously on her heels and pulls her lip into her mouth. “This isn’t a ploy or a proposition, Rebecca, I swear on my life.”

“I believe you,” she says softly as she reaches timidly for one of his hands.

“Come, sit down.” Rebecca sits on the edge of his bed and folds her hands in her lap. Nathaniel’s busying himself unbuttoning his sleeves and rolling them up his forearms that he doesn’t see Rebecca hiding her face in her hands once again as she sobs. Immediately, Nathaniel flinches. He doesn’t deal well with crying regularly to begin with, but his discomfort is made worse knowing the girl sitting next to him is someone he cares about. More than he cares to admit. “What’s wrong? Did I do something?”

Rebecca shakes her head and mutters something in between cries, though he has a hard time understanding what she intends to say. After a sniffle, she asks, “What’s wrong with me?”

“What are you talking about?” She cries harder under his scrutiny. It’s ridiculous to discuss it and especially with someone who Rebecca knows cares just as much, or possibly even less, about her than Josh does. Nathaniel slides his hand across to gently grasp her forearm. “Hey, look at me.”

The delicacy in his voice makes her head spring up immediately, and she stares into those icy blue eyes that, for the moment, hold no animosity towards her. He places his hand on Rebecca’s shoulder to comfort her but doesn’t press any further without her permission or initiation.

“I’m such an idiot. I thought we had a chance at making it work. I thought that maybe I could just get his attention by asking him to the Yule Ball, and I thought maybe that if he saw me tonight, he would change his mind, and he would know how I felt. But I’m just a stupid, stupid witch. To think that I would ever be good enough for a pureblood like him.”

She mutters the last sentence with such bitterness that Nathaniel actually flinches. He’s now indirectly on the receiving end of a dig at blood status instead of the lashing end for once, and he feels sorry for the comments he ever made about hers. Because he’s been given every advantage to succeed and still ranks just as highly in their year as she does, and she’s been dealt most every shitty card in the deck. Nathaniel’s not one to admit he’s wrong, but he knows he was wrong for the way he’s treated her in the past because it’s certainly not what she deserves. She deserves the Worlds and then some.

He picks her chin up and cups her face in his palm. “You’ve always been good enough for me,” he whispers.

Rebecca scoffs and turns her face away. “Liar.”

“It’s the truth, I promise,” he presses, taking one of her hands in his.

“Well, what about second year then? When you called me a frizzy-headed half-blood in front of our whole class?”

Nathaniel drops his gaze to his feet and loosens the grip on her hand. “It was not my brightest moment. You’ll have to forgive me for being an insufferable thirteen year-old boy who happened to be harboring, and trying to hide, a major crush on the smartest witch in class.”

“As if you’ve matured much since then,” she grumbles.

“You know the saying that if a boy pulls on a girl’s plaits, that means he likes her? Well…” Nathaniel pinches one curled strand of hair between his thumb and forefinger and tugs on it lightly with a “boop” noise.

She can’t help the snort and laugh that escapes her. Did Nathaniel Plimpton just say “boop” while pulling her hair? Hold the presses; Nathaniel Plimpton might just be the biggest dork she’s ever seen! The biggest, cutest, smartest, most handsome dork she’s ever seen.

And when she laughs, Nathaniel’s heart melts. He made her laugh, and it wasn’t forced or called for, but the genuine giggles rose from her throat, and it made him feel like the luckiest wizard in the world. Her laugh brightens the dark dormitory and creeps its way into the deepest, most sheltered parts of himself and urges him to open himself up completely to her. Bear his heart and invite her in where no one has ventured before. Doing that would be scary and might not end well on his part, but he feels compelled to take a chance before it’s too late.

Taking a deep breath, Nathaniel reaches out his hands, palms up, and waits for her to slide her hands into his before speaking his truth.

“Before we were interrupted back in the rose garden, I was going to say that I like you, Rebecca. A lot. I know that we’re sorted into rival Houses, and people will say that we shouldn’t be together, but I don’t care what other people say because they’re idiots who don’t see you for who you really are. I want to be with you, not just in secret and not just for ten minutes at a time. I want  _ you _ , Rebecca. Only you.” He squeezes her hands as he pauses. “I’ve said my peace. That’s what I want. What do you want?”

Her breath hitching at his honest and heartfelt admission, Rebecca looks up at Nathaniel in awe and nods. “That. All of that,” she whispers, her voice breaking with happy tears.

They move in together for a kiss that’s like no other they’ve shared before. This kiss is a fresh start for a new relationship. A new kind of relationship, one that neither of them are familiar with but know they’re willing to learn about together. The passion between them overflows and lights their hearts ablaze. It feels like coming home.

She shifts further onto the bed and pulls Nathaniel along with her to lie on top of her. Gently, Nathaniel leans her back onto his pillows and gasps as her hair fans out around her in luscious chocolate curls. She’s a marvel, truly a witch unlike any other. He has to pull back for a moment and absorb this image into his brain for eternity, so when she looks at him in confusion and begins to lift her head, he quickly stops her and sheepishly admits that he needs to just look at her for a moment.

He strokes her cheek dusted with glitter from her makeup and notices the way she melts into his touch like a cat. It’s fitting that her House’s mascot is a lion, given her poofy, wild mane of natural hair and her catlike tendencies to purr when she’s pleased and bare her teeth when she feels threatened. She’s a little lioness, he supposes. Brave, fierce, and regal.

“You’re so beautiful.” He whispers it like it’s their secret, like he doesn’t want anyone else to know or to hear because it’s too sacred. And he doesn’t know how that comment resonates within the walls of her heart, but she’s teetering on the edge of bursting into tears once again because someone finally thinks she’s beautiful and means it. There’s no pretense or facade. He means it.

She lifts her head and kisses him again, beginning to work the buttons of his shirt through their holes so that she can feel the warmth of his skin in the chilly room. He shrugs his shirt off of his shoulders and tosses it to the floor before pulling her to stand. Easily, he could have charmed her dress off of her, but he wants to take his time and savor undressing her. Who knows when he’ll get an opportunity like this again? Rebecca moves her hair to one side of her neck and leans back into the kisses Nathaniel dotes along her exposed skin as his nimble fingers work the tiny knot at the bottom of her bodice undone. He loosens each loop one by one, his kisses deepening with each tug of string, and he tugs down the small hidden zip underneath the fabric before helping her step out of the dress. It pools on the floor, and Rebecca turns to face him in her emerald green and black lace undergarments that he’s yet to actually see this evening. Nathaniel’s mouth waters looking at her in his House colors, and his hands comes to rest on her hips, his thumbs rubbing her sides.

“My, my, Miss Bunch, is this all for me?”

She playfully rolls her eyes. “Shut up, they were festive. It felt right.”

He hums in disbelief and kisses her once more, and he waits for her to back up onto the bed before climbing on top of her and running his hands down her body. Slowly, he sinks his fingers inside her underwear and fills her up for the second time that evening, and she makes the most luscious noise, her back rising from the bed. There’s no doubt that the sex is fantastic, and he knows how to please her without question, but this isn’t just about getting off. This is no hasty romp in a broom closet or sloppy fuck in the Room of Requirement. It’s something deeper. And both of them know it.

He takes his time sliding her underwear off before she works his belt and pants open, and for once, she’s not in a rush. She doesn’t need to be, nor does she want to be. She’s eager to enjoy the moment together and just  _ feel _ . Before he shucks his pants off entirely, Nathaniel retrieves his wand and casts a Contraception charm over her belly. Not because she doesn’t use alternative protection, but he wants to be doubly sure that he can release inside her with no repercussions because  _ god, _ he wants to so badly. As they kiss some more, Nathaniel asks if she’s ready and still wants to do this, to which she replies, “I’ve always wanted to.”

That’s all it takes before he pushes inside of her and captures her sounds of pleasure with his mouth. He sinks so deeply inside of her, finds hidden pleasure caverns in her body that send shockwaves racing through her veins with each thrust, and promises he’s never going to let go of her. Over and over, he peppers her face with kisses and lauds her with compliments, showering her with the praise and attention she deserves but has never received.

She kisses him back with an equal affection and knows that despite the tough front he puts up in front of his friends and classmates, he’s still just a boy who also needs to feel accepted. He’s vulnerable, just as the rest of them are, even if he’ll never admit it to himself. But she knows, and she hopes that she’s properly displaying how much he means to her. He’s gone out of his way to make her feel special, not just this evening, but so many other times when she stops to ponder it. He hasn’t needed to say he cares about her to prove that he does.

Neither of them last too much longer before they give into their releases and bask in the afterglow together, their hot, synchronized breaths intermingling in the cold dormitory. Their foreheads are pressed together as they breathe in time with one another, and their kisses remain delicate as sparrows’ feathers. He pulls out of her body after regaining his groundedness and casts a quick charm to clean themselves before rolling to her side and tugging her in close under the blankets, her head tucked into his neck.

Well, this is new.

She never pegged Nathaniel Plimpton as a cuddler, but she supposes given all of the new revelations about him tonight, she might have been misinterpreting him all along. It’s not uncomfortable cuddling with him; actually, it’s kind of nice. His body essentially swallows her own in comparison, and she enjoys the feeling of being completely held by someone else.

They lie in silence for a few moments before Rebecca kisses his collarbone and lifts her chin. “Hey, Nathaniel?”

“Yes, love?”

“Merry Christmas,” she whispers shyly.

“Best Christmas ever,” he replies, kissing her lips once before burrowing into the pillow behind his head and falling asleep just after she does.

They dream that evening of only each other.

Day breaks in the castle, though the Slytherin dormitory doesn’t reap many of the benefits of the natural sunshine streaming through the windows. There are no classes today since everyone is due to head home for winter holidays, so when Nathaniel wakes just after 6:00, he doesn’t bother disturbing the sleeping witch next to him, who’s happily dreaming away still curled into his side. After about half an hour passes, Rebecca stretches and protests waking up until she’s greeted by a soft kiss on her lips.

“Morning, sunshine,” he whispers.

“Mmmm, good morning.” He gives her another kiss and brushes her hair out of her eyes. Rebecca sits up a little and looks around the room. “Did anyone…?”

“Not that I’m aware of. If you’re worried about Wilson, don’t be. I would have heard shit from him already if he came back here.”

Rebecca’s eyebrows raise in curiosity. She wonders if he and Victor hooked up at some point during or after the Ball and assumes perhaps that’s why he hasn’t entered his own dormitory yet. She’s made a lot of incorrect assumptions lately, but she supposes she’s right about that one. One of her others, however… she’s uncertain, to say the least, but isn’t quite sure how to address the topic that’s currently plaguing her thoughts. Nathaniel reads her unease tactfully and slowly turns her face up towards his own.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing,” she shrugs. He doesn’t have to say anything, just looks at her, unconvinced. He’s too observant for her own good. She sighs and tries her hardest to look him in the eyes, but her nerves seem to be failing her. “Umm… so, last night, uh— do you…?”

He thinks he knows where she’s going with this, so he jumps in to finish her sentence. “Regret it?” Casting her eyes down, she nods. He probably does, she thinks.  _ He probably does, and I’m an idiot for thinking that for a moment, he could actually have cared about me. He probably thinks I’m so desperate and— _ Nathaniel kisses the top of her head. “Of course not.”

“Really?” He nods and tilts her head up for another kiss, tucking her now wavy hair behind her ear. “So, everything you said was…”

“True. All of it. I don’t want to hide anymore, Rebecca. I want to be with you, and screw what everyone else thinks. You’re the smartest, sweetest witch I know, and you’re not half bad on the eyes either,” he teases as he ruffles her hair.

“I’ll remember that the next time you have something snarky to say about my hair.” She laughs and pecks his lips before tossing the blankets off of her to reluctantly get out of bed.

Nathaniel stays put while she works at shrinking her ball gown down to fit inside her pocket and transfigures his borrowed oversized t-shirt into a green sweater dress, and she throws her hair into an unkempt ponytail, wrapping a candy cane striped ribbon around her hair. Watching Rebecca perform magic will never cease to amaze him. He’s truly astounded by her natural aptitude, and her affinity for studying and reading only helps her be successful. Truly, it motivates him. It feeds his competitive nature and happens to make an excellent form of foreplay. With one last kiss, Rebecca’s out the door, promising to see him at breakfast. He smiles after she’s gone and leans his head back against the headboard contentedly.

Smiling all the way down the stairs, Rebecca feels a lightness take over her body. She’s giddy with promise and thinks she might be onto something good for once. Something healthy for a change.

Suddenly, Rebecca squeaks as her body slams into another, and her smile quickly disappears. She stops to look up at who she needs to apologize to and sees the questioning stare of Josh Wilson wondering why they just collided clear into each other.

She speaks slowly and looks him up and down. “You’re in my House’s robes…”

He’s quick to retort. “You’re in  _ my _ House’s common room…”

Rebecca brushes her hands down her dress and clears her throat. “Since when did my whereabouts become a matter of your concern, Wilson?”

“Since you’re in my territory without a sufficient explanation as to why, Bunch.”

Quick, Bunch, think of something fast. Rebecca folds her arms and sits into her hip. “Well, where’s your sufficient explanation as to why you weren’t here all last night?”

“How would you know I wasn’t here all night?”

They look at each other, assessing the awkwardness now starkly present in front of them. Recognition flits across their eyes, and they mumble hasty goodbyes as they pass each other.

“See you at breakfast,” she says.

“See you in Hell,” he replies.

Rebecca ignores the awkward confrontation with Nathaniel’s best friend, even though she knows they’re both totally busted, and tries to act as naturally as possible when entering the Great Hall for breakfast, immediately finding Heather and Valencia at the prefects’ table as she always does and slides into the bench with a breezy smile.

“Morning, ladies! Did you have fun at the Ball last night?”

“Personally, I had a lot of fun. But I don’t think you’re one to talk given that you missed almost all of it,” Valencia snarks.

Rebecca laughs and looks down nervously at her bowl of oatmeal. “What? What are you talking about?”

“So, you’re just not gonna give us the deets on why we both saw you prance out of here with Plimpton and never show up again, and you just so happen to be wearing his House color this morning,” Heather deadpans.

“Okay, first of all, green is a Christmas color, not just a Slytherin color. It’s not nice to make assumptions. And second of all, nothing happened, okay? I was his date to the Ball, you’ll recall. We both needed some air, so we went for a walk and ended up talking the rest of the night.”

“Riiiiiiight, so, which parts of your body were the ones doing the talking?” Valencia laughs with Heather and waggles her eyebrows at Rebecca.

“Heather!” Rebecca nearly drops her spoon into her bowl in shock. “Oh, come on, do you guys really think we ran off to have sex?”

“No, honey, we don’t think it. We know it.” Valencia flashes a compact mirror in Rebecca’s direction, and it’s then she takes notice of the kiss-bitten mark on the flesh of her neck. Her mouth drops open, and Rebecca quickly casts a concealment charm to prevent anyone else from seeing it. “At least we know it was good, right?”

“That prick! I’m gonna kill him…”

“Nathaniel Plimpton, you son of a bitch,” Josh yells as he makes his way into his dormitory with the young man in question still shirtless and wrapped in his bedsheets. Immediately, Nathaniel stiffens and sits up straighter as he puts on his hard exterior.

“Oh, hey, buddy. How’ve you been? Long time, no see.”

“You wanna tell me why I just ran into Rebecca Bunch in the Slytherin common room?” Nathaniel starts to open his mouth to explain (or formulate some coherent excuse) but Josh cuts him off. “Actually, don’t. I’d probably rather not know.”

“Probably not. But I would like to know where you were last night… and why the hell you’re wearing a Gryffindor robe. Who’s the lucky lady?”

Josh scratches behind his ear and turns slightly away from his friend. “Uhh, actually… not a…”

_ Oh.  _ Nathaniel nods a few times as he purses his lips together processing this new revelation. At least now he understands the origin of his nickname, “White Josh,” because certainly no one would walk around calling him “Gay Josh.” Nathaniel and Josh both begin to dress in their proper clothes on opposite sides of the room to head to the Great Hall for breakfast.

“Anyway, you missed a hell of a time last night, dude. It was a pretty cool Yule, if I may say so myself. I think I helped liven up the festivities.”

“Oh yeah? What’d you do, give Whitefeather a strip tease or something?”

Josh sputters. “Nah, nothing that extreme. But on the off-chance he might also be attracted to men, that’s not a bad idea to boost my grade in his class. Anyway, no, dude, I spiked the punch.”

Nathaniel’s just pulled his undershirt over his head when he turns to look at Josh. “What?!”

“Yeah. I had some help, but I was able to make Veritaserum, so I put it in the punch bowl, and things got  _ wild _ in there.” Nathaniel stomps over to Josh and slaps the back of his head. “Ow, what was that for?”

“Are you serious? Dude, you’re gonna get in serious trouble if someone finds out about this.”

“No one’s gonna find out about it because the only two people who know and will know are you and Heather Davis. I’ve already sworn her to secrecy. Your turn now.” Nathaniel’s mouth twists uncomfortably, and he looks down at his feet. “Who knows, maybe after breakfast, I blab to Buttenweiser about your little midnight rendezvous?”

“You wouldn’t,” Nathaniel threatens darkly, his hand tightening into a fist by his side.

“An eye for an eye, man.”

Nathaniel knows he’s cornered. No one can know that he snuck Rebecca into his room last night; they’d both be expelled or worse, and he couldn’t have her take the fall for something that was his doing. He’d never hear the end of it from his parents if they were to find out. Certainly, he and Rebecca would never be able to see each other again. He’d much rather their secrets of the night remain as such so they could both focus on the future.

“Fine, I won’t tell. Come on, we’re gonna be late for breakfast.”

Nathaniel leaves the dormitory first, still uneasy knowing his best friend’s secret. He also knows that both he and Rebecca most likely fell victim to his friend’s antics, which means that she wasn’t lying about anything she said either. That momentarily eases his worries because he knows that Rebecca really does want to be with him, and she wasn’t saying it to pad his ego. It keeps him smiling until he leaves the Slytherin haven and composes himself. He’s the Slytherin Prince; he’s got to act like it, at least in front of the masses.

He tries not to glance and smile at Rebecca too much from across the table, but temptation grabs hold of him when he sees her laugh with her friends, and he lifts his eyes, brimming with such boyish hope, and when she catches him staring, she doesn’t roll her eyes or cast him away; she flutters her eyelashes and smiles back.

“Attention, all Hogwarts students!” Herbology Professor Karen’s shrill shriek of a voice breaks the two lovebirds out of their trance. “Attendees of last evening’s Yule Ball, please remain in the Great Hall for an imperative meeting with Headmaster Buttenweiser. All other students, you are dismissed.”

The younger students begin to snicker at their older peers being reprimanded, and the prefects shoot any mischievous children a stern look if they giggle and threaten to remove House points if their snotty-nose behavior continues. The young ones scram for their dormitories to retrieve their belongings before going home for the winter holidays, and the older students are left alone to deal with Headmaster Buttenweiser.

While the older pupils shift in their seats searching for someone to pin the blame on, Headmaster Buttenweiser goes on an unending tangent about how this incident could affect the future reputation of Hogwarts to their colleagues beyond. No one was harmed, thank Godric, but someone could have been if the fighting between Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws escalated any further than it did. Easily, this could have lead to scandal and destruction if not dealt with swiftly. The only three students aware of the perpetrator and his actions remain deathly silent and refused to let on that they know who started the whole thing while the Headmaster speaks and try to remain as unassuming as the rest of the students in the Hall. 

Finally free from the needlepoint gaze of the Headmaster after fifteen minutes of lecturing, the students make hushed conversation on the way back to their respective dormitories about potential suspects. Rebecca bids her friends farewell and starts to head in the opposite direction to her dorm before Nathaniel stops her in the hallway and offers to walk her back.

“So, any big plans for the break? Are you heading home to see your mother for Christmas?”

“No, I’m not. Since we don’t really celebrate Christmas in my house anymore, I made an excuse that I’d be too preoccupied with my studies here over the break to make it home. Plus, I’m sure that I’ll have to keep an eye on the younger ones as a prefect, which takes up a considerable amount of time. I did, unfortunately, promise I’d come home for Passover, which, in hindsight, was probably a terrible choice since I’ll certainly be much too busy studying for my O.W.L.s, and—”

Nathaniel stops walking and gently touches her shoulders, facing her body towards his. “Rebecca, you’re rambling.”

She laughs, embarrassed. “Right, sorry. You don’t want to hear about all that—”

“I do; you’re just speaking so fast I can barely keep up.”

“You’re a Chaser, Plimpton, I thought speed was one of your attributes,” she flirts.

“It is. Though I’d like to think my stamina is what keeps the witches coming back. How I can just keep going, and going, and going…” Nathaniel leans in closer to her ear as he emphasizes his statement.

“Yes, yes, I see your point.” She pushes him back with a laugh and resumes strolling towards the Gryffindor Tower. “Well, what about you? I suppose your folks have a big grandiose celebration planned at the Estate for Christmas, right?”

“They do, yes, but I’m thinking about making myself scarce this year. Mother’s been frightfully busy making sure every last detail is planned to Pimpton perfection, and I wouldn’t want to be in her way. And Father is… well, he’s Father. Making myself scarce is probably best anyhow.”

Rebecca stops before the portrait of the Fat Lady and rocks back and forth on her heels as she faces Nathaniel. “Well, if you’re planning to stick around through the break, then I suppose I’ll see you around then? I’m sure you’ll know where to find me, should you ever desire the company.”

“If the company’s as good-looking as you, I’ll always desire the company,” he replies, his voice dropping low next to her ear. She can’t help the way she shivers, but when he speaks that way, how can she not? Rebecca smiles up at him for a moment before the blush creeps into her cheeks, and she looks away with a girlish giggle. “Why don’t we go into Hogsmeade later today? Take the day off from studying and just have some fun?”

She stares back at him in shock. “Nathaniel Plimpton wants to take the day off and have  _ fun _ ? I figured you’d be too busy planning your next revenge scheme or working over a cauldron in solitude.”

“Wow, you must not know anything about me, Bunch. If that’s the case, then we’ve got a long night ahead of us.” He only slightly deflates as he prepares his next sentence. “But I promise I’ll have you back home before midnight.”

Rebecca folds her hands and sways girlishly from side to side. “Awww, like Cinderella?”

“Like before curfew.” Nathaniel presses a quick kiss to her cheek, and she smiles brightly. “Meet me out front at 3:00?”

“It’s a date.”

“That it is.”

Nathaniel leaves her with a smile and turns back down the staircase to head to his own common room, and before she whispers the password to the portrait, she sighs wistfully and wonders how and why she got so lucky here.

Later that day, she keeps on her same dress but fixes her hair and makeup because she and Nathaniel Plimpton are going out to Hogsmeade  _ together _ , on a  _ date _ , and it’s indescribable the influx of emotions she’s feeling. All good and happy and nervous and anxious at the same time. Sure, she wants everything to go exactly as she imagines in her head of how a first date should go, but she remembers the lesson that Professor Proctor— Paula— preached to her at the ball. Be brave, and take chances. That’s what being a Gryffindor is all about. Facing fears, even if they are scary. All that was missing from her powder room pep talk was a crowd of choir voices to back her up.

She could do this. It’s just one date.

When he sees her descend the staircase in her chunky heeled boots and green sweater dress from earlier in the day, now with a scarf wrapped around her neck and her hair fashioned into a voluminous and sassy ponytail atop her head with a swipe of cherry red lipstick to complete the look, he nearly trips over himself as he moves to meet her. He kisses her possessively, and she pulls back blushing when a few younger students “ooh” and “ahh” over the couple displaying affection in front of them.

“I’m sorry, I had to make sure you were real and not just the girl I’ve seen in my dreams the last few nights.”

“Shut up,” she teases and pecks his lips once before walking with him hand in hand to the train station.


End file.
